LOS ANGELES (Ticker) -- After missing the Los Angeles Lakers'
first 15 games, Kobe Bryant may not be at 100 percent. But he is
getting close.

In his second game since returning from a broken bone in his
right hand, Bryant put on a show with 14 of his 23 points in the
fourth quarter as the Lakers avenged an earlier loss to the
Portland Trail Blazers with a 93-80 victory

Still wearing a protective glove on his hand, Bryant took over
in the final period, scoring nine straight points for Los
Angeles over a five-minute stretch. His two foul shots gave the
Lakers a 77-65 lead with 5:50 left.

"I'm still trying to get a lot of it back," Bryant said. "Our
rhythm as a team is a little off. Our timing is not there with
the triangle sets."

When it appeared the Lakers were on the verge of a
fourth-quarter collapse, Bryant helped sealed the Trail Blazers'
fate with a spectaular defensive play.

After Portland closed to 79-74, Bryant blocked Scottie Pippen's
layup into the first row of the seats with 2:14 remaining. He
added five points in the final two minutes as Los Angeles (13-4)
moved within one-half game of first-place Portland (14-4) in the
Pacific Division.

"I knew that was a big possession for them," Bryant said of his
block. "If he makes a layup, the momentum could possibly shift.
So, I decided to either take the foul or try to block it and I
don't think they saw me coming."

The Blazers posted a 97-82 home victory over Los Angeles on
November 6 but the Lakers were without Bryant while Shaquille
O'Neal was ejected early in the fourth quarter.

"It was a messy first half, but in the second half we came out
and played like we had a purpose," Lakers coach Phil Jackson
said. "It was a hard win, but we did what we wanted to do."

The 7-2 O'Neal dominated inside tonight with 21 points and 16
rebounds while Ron Harper added a season-high 18 points for the
Lakers.

"I'd give myself a 79, a high C," O'Neal said. "If I pick it up,
it should be nasty."

"They good defense and I think Shaq is doing a better job this
year of playing good defense, coming over from the weak side
blocking shots," Pippen added. "They're pretty aggressive this
year."

Damon Stoudamire scored 23 points and Steve Smith added 18 for
the Blazers, who led 59-54 late in the third quarter before the
Lakers finished the period with an 8-0 run.

"Portland is an offensive team and they come out to destroy
you," Jackson said. "It was a tough night to shoot until we got
some blocks."

Brian Grant's dunk gave Portland its five-point lead with 3:31
remaining in the period but the Blazers went in a 4 1/2-minute
drought that extended into the final quarter. Portland shot just
12.5 percent from the field the third period.

"We just couldn't get anything to fall for us," Pippen said. "We
didn't take advantage of the opportunities when they were there,
and as a result, when they made their run, we were unable to
hold a surge."

Glen Rice's two foul shots snapped a 59-59 tie with 1:30 left in
the third period and gave the Lakers the lead for good. Derek
Fisher's three-point play and eight-foot jumper staked Los
Angeles to a 72-65 edge with 7:43 to play.

"Whenever a situation gets tight like that, you have instincts
to step up to the plate and step up to the challenge and we did
an excellent job at that," Bryant said. "It will be a challenge
every time we face (Portland) because of their depth and
athleticism."

After Bryant's jumper made it 79-67 with 4:28 left, Stoudamire
ignited a 7-0 run with two foul shots. A jumper by Rasheed
Wallace, who scored 17 points, and Detlef Schrempf's 3-pointer
pulled the Blazers within 79-74 with 3:07 remaining.

The defenses dominated the battle of Western Conference powers
as the Lakers shot 36 percent (31-of-86) from the field and the
Blazers only 34 percent (26-of-76).

"I thought we did a pretty good job defensively for most of the
night," Portland coach Mike Dunleavy said. "We had a hard time
making shots and then I thought a couple times, particularly in
the fourth quarter, we let penetration beat us."

Los Angeles committed just six turnovers and held a 57-42 edge
on the boards. The Lakers outscored the Blazers in the paint,
18-5.

The Lakers surged out of the gate, taking a 10-1 lead on Rice's
3-pointer just 2:05 into the first period. Portland answered
with a 24-8 spurt to take a 25-18 first-quarter lead on
Stoudamire's 3-pointer with 26 seconds left in the period.

However, the Lakers allowed just 11 points in the second quarter
and grabbed a 37-36 halftime lead.